Why should science be accepted? (v1.0)
This is really an article that poses a series of logic assertions. It is an exercise in logic/reasoning but is set in a scientific setting. Only the first statement is a statement about science. The scientific method is a rigorous approach. It really sounds weird, but I can't spot a logic flaw. Here are the logic assertions.
- A consensus science result may get
replaced tomorrow with a better and more accurate result as more data
comes in. This is a fact.
- A climate or evolution sceptic
for example may argue a particular result they don't like should be
ignored because of the above - it may get replaced tomorrow.
- But then by this logic
shouldn't all scientific results be ignored because the exact same
argument applies to every single one of them?
- Using this argument, when
would a scientific result ever not be ignored because there is ALWAYS a
tomorrow all the way to infinity?
- That means selective rejection
of a scientific result by someone because a better result may come along
means really a rejection of ALL scientific results for ever.
- You could also reject a result
permanently and expect no better result to ever emerge, which is a
demonstration of arrogance.
- Or you could reject it because you
disagree, but you must then demonstrate why the whole scientific method is
wrong and yours is better.
- Or
the rejection is not for a reasoned argument in which case this whole
discussion is moot.
Here is the definition of scientific method from Wikipedia.
"The scientific
method is an empirical method for acquiring knowledge that
has characterized the development of science since at least the 17th century.
The scientific method involves careful observation coupled with rigorous
skepticism, because cognitive assumptions can distort the
interpretation of the observation. Scientific inquiry includes creating
hypothesis a through inductive reasoning, testing it through
experiments and statistical analysis, and adjusting or discarding the
hypothesis based on the results.
Although procedures
vary from one field of inquiry to another, the underlying process is often
similar. The process in the scientific method involves making
conjectures (hypothetical explanations), deriving predictions from the
hypotheses as logical consequences, and then carrying out experiments or
empirical observations based on those predictions. A hypothesis is a
conjecture based on knowledge obtained while seeking answers to the question.
The hypothesis might be very specific, or it might be broad. Scientists then
test hypotheses by conducting experiments or studies. A scientific hypothesis
must be falseable, implying that it is possible to identify a possible
outcome of an experiment or observation that conflicts with predictions deduced
from the hypothesis; otherwise, the hypothesis cannot be meaningfully tested.
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